Will There Be a Shortage of Entry-Level Graphics Cards for the Rest of the Year?

Hot news News Tech Tech News 08/17/2026

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TECH NEWS – The situation with graphics cards hasn’t been simple so far, and it looks like things could get worse.

According to reports, price hikes aren’t just affecting the higher-end market; the entry-level segment will also be impacted more acutely. Graphics card prices are suddenly rising again. This was to be expected, however, given that demand for AI continues to drive up DRAM prices. GPUs, which were already expensive, have become even more expensive, with new price records being set periodically. While GPUs with larger VRAM capacities are more affected by the situation, those with lower capacities aren’t immune either. When the price of the 16 GB GeForce RTX 5060 Ti exceeded $800 at major retailers, it became clear that the mid-range segment had been hit hardest by the price hikes. However, it seems that the worst is yet to come in another segment…

According to PC Partner Group, the parent company of Zotac, Inno3D and Manli, an even more severe shortage is expected in the entry-level graphics card segment. The company says this will happen very soon, as the average selling price is set to skyrocket in the second half of 2026. We are already in the second half of the year, and if its forecast proves accurate, we will have to prepare for the affordable segment to gradually disappear as well. Entry-level cards such as the RTX 3050, RTX 5050 and recently launched RX 9050 are already selling above the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, though they’re still relatively affordable compared to cards in the 60 and 70 classes. The entry-level market is the only hope for millions of people who can still afford to play games in an era when RAM and SSD prices are driving the total cost of PCs to insane levels.

PC Partner Group blamed the rising cost of memory, which is hardly surprising at this point. This has forced manufacturers to implement new price adjustments several times this year. The stability we had hoped for appears not to exist, and building an affordable PC may soon become a thing of the past.

Source: WCCFTech, Videocardz

Angyal Anikó

Anikó, our news editor and communication manager, is more interested in the business side of the gaming industry. She worked at banks, and she has a vast knowledge of business life. Still, she likes puzzle and story-oriented games, like Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments, which is her favourite title. She also played The Sims 3, but after accidentally killing a whole sim family, swore not to play it again. (For our office address, email and phone number check out our IMPRESSUM)